


Different

by Ikea_Tello



Category: Rise of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (Cartoon 2018), Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles - All Media Types
Genre: Angst, Angst with a Happy Ending, Fluff and Angst, Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-06-24
Updated: 2020-06-24
Packaged: 2021-03-04 02:01:55
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,756
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24895837
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Ikea_Tello/pseuds/Ikea_Tello
Summary: He knew he was different from them, and he hated it.Why couldn't he be like his brothers?
Relationships: Donatello & Leonardo & Raphael (TMNT), Leo & Donnie & Raph
Comments: 4
Kudos: 83





	Different

He didn't get it.

This was the third time this week that he was being patched up, and he just didn't understand.

He was smart for a six-year-old, and he could have told anyone that from the start. He could do things that his brothers couldn't, including making various creations and inventions.

But even for the brains of the family, he still had questions.

He just wanted to play like his brothers did. They wrestled each other like nothing, and they seemed to have a great time doing it, they were having _fun_.

Yet, whenever Donnie tried to join them, he'd get hurt.

He couldn't play like them. His father told him that multiple times before, but the softshell just didn't understand. It took him many accidents and many painful falls for the message to get across, leaving Donnie to just go into his own world. Distancing himself from his brothers, he began to focus more on his tech and inventions.

He still had a feeling inside of him though. He just wanted to be like them; he wanted to run and jump and hang and just be a _normal kid._

He just wanted to have fun.

...Maybe he just couldn't understand everything.

~~~~~

After looking at his shell for what seemed like the twentieth time that day, Donnie sighed.

It had been weeks since he had injured himself, but the pain was still unbearable. The scratches on his back were barely visible anymore, and he was grateful for that. But what the teen couldn't understand was why it had happened.

He had his battle shell on at the time, so why did he get these marks in the first place? Let alone why did it hurt so much?

He thought he was getting better at this...

Sure, he knew he wasn't unharmable, but the battle shell helped to protect him from most pains.

Unfortunately, it didn't protect him from all of them.

As he checked his shell in the mirror again, a frown slowly appeared on his face.

Was he weak for this?

It wasn't his fault that he was a softshell, he knew that. But it didn't help that he had to be treated with extra care.

He knew his brothers meant well, but it was starting to get annoying. Whenever Donnie would wince or yell in pain because of his shell, they'd rush to his side and try to aid him.

Most of the time he appreciated it. But now he was starting to hate it.

Sometimes he wouldn't even be in that much pain. A light ow would still send his brothers rushing over. They'd check him and look him over to make sure that he was ok.

Despite the softshell's tries to make them stop because it was annoying him, they would still check and ask him questions and stare, _and oh my god, I'm fine, leave me alone!_

He loved his brothers, but they just couldn't take a hint.

He decided to stop torturing himself and go to get a drink of coffee. He would soon forget about this later when he would go to the lab and began working, and he'd do anything to make himself stop thinking about his shell.

He threw on his signature purple jacket and walked into the kitchen, smiling softly as the coffee maker whirled on. He could hear Leo and Mikey skateboarding in the distance, and the TV was set on low as Splinter snored in his chair.

He looked around to see if he could spot Raph, but the snapping turtle was nowhere to be seen.

He figured he was probably in his room, so Donnie took his mug and went into the lab to begin working.

Only four minutes had passed, and Donnie's shell had begun to ache again.

He hadn't even really done anything to it. He groaned as he rubbed his shell, trying to stop the pain, but the gesture had only made it worse.

"You ok, Don?" He heard Raph say.

Donnie groaned again as he turned around in his chair to look at his brother.

"Yes Raph, I'm fine," he muttered. "Do you need something?"

"I just came in here to check on you," Raph said as he frowned. He began to walk towards the genius as Donnie sighed.

"Is your shell ok?"

"I told you, I'm fine," Donnie answered. "Now if you excuse me, I have to start working."

Raph stared at Donnie for a little longer before glancing at his shell.

"Where's your battle shell?" He asked the softshell.

 _What's with all the questions?!_ Donnie thought with a huff.

"I decided to wear my jacket," Donnie replied. "Why? Is it a problem when I don't wear my battle shell?"

"No, it's just that you don't normally walk around without it," Raph answered. "Did you do something to your shell?"

"For the last time, I'm fine!" Donnie groaned. "Can you lay off me for five seconds?!"

Raph glanced back from Donnie's shell to his face, all while his frown deepened.

"Ok, but if you wanna talk," Raph told him. "You know we're here for you."

"I don't need to talk," Donnie grumbled. "What I need for you is to get out so that I can work."

"Alright, I'll leave you alone," Raph said as he turned around to exit the lab. He glanced at Donnie once more before leaving as the softshell sighed.  
Donnie rubbed his shell once more before beginning to start on his work.

The pain was getting worse, but he could manage...

~~~~~

His brothers had started to catch on.

Mainly because they were just nosy, but it also didn't help that Donnie would wince every five minutes.

The pain had begun to get worse. He'd check his shell in private to see if the scratches had somehow gotten worse; if they had somehow gotten bigger, but they looked the same as they always did.

So why in the world did it hurt so much?!

It might have been the fact that he hadn't treated them right. Or maybe it was because he kept messing with them every five minutes.

But whatever the reason, he knew he had to do something about it.

As he sighed, he stood up and headed to his twin's room.

Mikey would have been the first person he would go to, but he just felt like Leo would understand him more (that, and because of the whole "we're twins" thing).

Once he got to his blue brother's room, he spotted the slider on the bed, scrolling through his phone. Leo looked up at Donnie and sat his phone down beside him, a confused expression coming into his face.

"Hey Don," he said with a stare. "You need anything?"

"I need to talk," Donnie said as he walked over to his twin.

 _Huh, that's weird..._ Leo thought to himself. Donnie usually never wanted to talk, the others usually had to pry out whatever he was feeling from him.

"Ok, what is it?" Leo asked as Donnie sat beside him on the bed.

"It's about my shell," Donnie started.

"Did something happen to it?" Leo asked in concern. He then looked at Donnie's back and frowned, he didn't realize the genius wasn't wearing his battle shell until now.

"I mean, it happened a couple of weeks ago," Donnie answered. "It's not even that bad really, it's just a couple of scratches."

"Can I see?" Leo asked, waiting for his brother to respond. He smiled softly as Donnie took off his jacket, but his frown came back as he examined the scratches.

Like Donnie said, they weren't that bad. But from the looks of it, they seemed to be pretty bad before. But they were healing now, so the slider was a little grateful.

"Why didn't you tell us you hurt yourself?" Leo questioned.

"Because you guys get so overprotective," Donnie groaned. "I can take care of myself, I don't need you guys on my shell every five minutes."

Leo looked at Donnie's shell again before sighing.

"Ok, yeah I get that," he responded. "But something else is bothering you."

Donnie looked at his twin and turned the other way. Leo was always so quick to figure out if Donnie was hiding something, and that was another reason why he wished he went to Mikey. But if this was the only way he could let his feelings out, then so be it.

"I just hate being different from you guys," Donnie sighed. "I can't do most of the things you all can, do you know how frustrating that is?!"

Leo listened as his brother ranted, his frown deepening as Donnie talked. He knew that Donnie hated that he had imperfections, but Leo didn't know that he felt like this.

"The scratches aren't even that bad, but the pain that comes from them is insane," Donnie continued. "Sometimes I wonder how it would be to have a normal shell..."

"Donnie, you know we love you, right?" Leo asked suddenly. "We wouldn't want you any other way."

"I know, but I can't help but think sometimes..." Donnie replied.

"Nothing is gonna happen to you," Leo said as he rested his hand on Donnie's shoulder. When he didn't flinch, he continued.

"You have your battle shell and us. Nothing is gonna hurt you. We won't let that happen."

Silence fell over the room as Leo looked at his twin, searching for any signs of discomfort. He smiled a little as he saw Donnie glance at him.

"Yeah," Donnie replied. "And yes, you can hug me now."

Leo grinned as he embraced the genius, and his smile got bigger as Donnie leaned into the hug. At the first impact, Donnie winced a bit since his shell started to ache. Leo made sure to not hug him too tight and to take his shell into consideration.

The hug lasted for a few minutes, and though Leo had wanted it to be a little longer, he let Donnie go.

"You all better now?" Leo asked.

"Yeah," Donnie replied. He then looked at Leo with a scowl. "If you tell the others about this you're dead."

"I won't," Leo said with a chuckle. "My lips are sealed.

Feelings were a hard thing for Donnie to talk about, but it was getting easier for him to tell the others how he felt. Hopefully, the pain in his shell would go away soon, and then things would go back to normal.

Or rather, as normal as being a mutant turtle can get.


End file.
